Career and Education Opportunities for Municipal Clerks in Nashua, New Hampshire

For those living in the Nashua, New Hampshire area, there are many career and education opportunities for municipal clerks. There are currently 370 jobs for municipal clerks in New Hampshire and this is projected to grow by 10% to 410 jobs by 2016. This is better than the national trend for municipal clerks, which sees this job pool growing by about 8.2% over the next eight years. Municipal clerks generally draft agendas and bylaws for town or city council; record minutes of council meetings; answer official correspondence; keep fiscal records and accounts; and prepare reports on civic needs.

Municipal clerks earn approximately $14 per hour or $29,870 annually on average in New Hampshire. Nationally they average about $15 hourly or $33,200 per year. Compared with people working in the overall category of Clerical, people working as municipal clerks in New Hampshire earn more. They earn more than people working in the overall category of Clerical nationally.

There are fifty-seven schools of higher education in the Nashua area, including one within twenty-five miles of Nashua where you can get a degree to start your career as a municipal clerk. Given that the most common education level for municipal clerks is a high school diploma or GED, you can expect to spend only a short time training to become a municipal clerk if you already have a high school diploma.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Municipal Clerk

Municipal Clerk video from the State of New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development

In general, municipal clerks draft agendas and bylaws for town or city council; record minutes of council meetings; answer official correspondence; keep fiscal records and accounts; and prepare reports on civic needs.

Municipal clerks record and edit the minutes of meetings and distribute to appropriate officials and staff members. They also research data in the municipal archives upon request of public officials and private citizens. Equally important, municipal clerks have to respond to requests for data from the public and state and federal legislative offices. They are often called upon to perform general office duties, such as taking and transcribing dictation, typing and proofreading correspondence, distributing and filing official forms, and scheduling appointments. They are expected to issue public notification of all official efforts and meetings. Finally, municipal clerks formulate and direct the maintenance and computerization of all municipal documents.

Every day, municipal clerks are expected to be able to articulate ideas and problems. They need to listen to and understand others in meetings. It is also important that they read and understand documents and reports.

It is important for municipal clerks to ready meeting agendas and packets of related data. They are often called upon to perform budgeting duties, including assisting in budget preparation and budget administration. They also ready ordinances and proclamations so that they can be executed and distributed. They are sometimes expected to direct and maintain office tracking systems for correspondence and follow-up actions. Somewhat less frequently, municipal clerks are also expected to process claims against the municipality, maintaining files and log of claims, and direct claim response and handling with municipal claims administrators.

They also have to be able to furnish assistance to persons with disabilities in reaching less accessible areas of municipal facilities and maintain and update documents. And finally, they sometimes have to formulate and direct the maintenance and computerization of all municipal documents.

Like many other jobs, municipal clerks must have exceptional integrity and be thorough and dependable.

Correspondence Clerk. Compose letters in reply to requests for merchandise, damage claims, credit and other information, delinquent accounts, or unsatisfactory services. Duties may include gathering data to formulate reply and typing correspondence.

Courtroom Clerk. Perform clerical duties in court of law; prepare docket of cases to be called; secure information for judges; and contact witnesses, attorneys, and litigants to obtain information for court.

File Clerk. File correspondence, cards, and other records in alphabetical or numerical order or according to the filing system used. Locate and remove material from file when requested.

Office Clerk. Perform duties too varied and diverse to be classified in any specific office clerical occupation, requiring limited knowledge of office management systems and procedures. Clerical duties may be assigned in accordance with the office procedures of individual establishments and may include a combination of answering telephones, bookkeeping, typing or word processing, stenography, office machine operation, and filing.

Order Clerk. Receive and process incoming orders for materials, merchandise, or services such as repairs, installations, or rental of facilities. Duties include informing customers of receipt, prices, and delays; preparing contracts; and handling complaints.

Payroll Bookkeeper. Compile and post employee time and payroll data. May compute employees' time worked, production, and commission. May compute and post wages and deductions. May prepare paychecks.

Procurement Clerk. Compile information and records to draw up purchase orders for procurement of materials and services.

Receptionist. Answer inquiries and obtain information for general public, customers, and other interested parties. Provide information regarding activities conducted at establishment; location of departments, offices, and employees within organization.

Statistical Clerk. Compile and compute data according to statistical formulas for use in statistical studies. May perform actuarial computations and compile charts and graphs for use by actuaries. Includes actuarial clerks.

Weighter. Weigh, measure, and check materials, supplies, and equipment for the purpose of keeping relevant records. Duties are primarily clerical by nature.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Municipal Clerk Training

Middlesex Community College - Bedford, MA

Middlesex Community College, Springs Rd, Bedford, MA 01730-9124. Middlesex Community College is a medium sized college located in Bedford, Massachusetts. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 8,511 students. Middlesex Community College has a less than one year and an associate's degree program in General Office Occupations and Clerical Services which graduated zero and three students respectively in 2008.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Nashua, New Hampshire

Nashua, New Hampshire photo by FSosio

Nashua is situated in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire. It has a population of over 86,576. The cost of living index in Nashua, 119, is far greater than the national average. New single-family homes in Nashua are valued at $175,700 on average, which is well below the state average. In 2008, fifty-seven new homes were constructed in Nashua, down from seventy-nine the previous year.

The three big industries for women in Nashua are health care, educational services, and computer and electronic products. For men, it is computer and electronic products, professional, scientific, and technical services, and construction. The average commute to work is about 25 minutes. More than 31.5% of Nashua residents have a bachelor's degree, which is lower than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 11.2%, is lower than the state average.

The unemployment rate in Nashua is 7.5%, which is greater than New Hampshire's average of 6.5%.

The percentage of Nashua residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 58.1%, is more than both the national and state average. Bethel Church, Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashua and Trinity Baptist Church are among the churches located in Nashua. The most common religious groups are the Catholic Church, the United Church of Christ and the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.

Nashua is home to the Hillsborough County Courthouse and the Goodhue Memorial Library as well as Deschenes Oval and Nashua Manufacturing Company Historic District. Shopping malls in the area include Amherst Street Mall Shopping Center, Royal Ridge Mall Shopping Center and Nashua Mall Shopping Center. Visitors to Nashua can choose from Chalet Susse Motor Lodge, Crowne Plaza Nashua and Speaker's Corner Restaurant for temporary stays in the area.